Split apron forage box container

ABSTRACT

An apron system for use with a forage box container includes split aprons having a first apron and a second apron, the first apron having a pair of spaced apart, continuous, advancing chains, a plurality of spaced apart, transverse bars extending substantially between the pair of spaced apart chains, each of the plurality of bars being operably coupled to each of the pair of advancing chains, the first apron being disposed in a forage box container bed first portion. The second apron has a pair of spaced apart, continuous, advancing chains, a plurality of spaced apart, transverse bars extending substantially between the pair of spaced apart chains, each of the plurality of bars being operably coupled to each of the pair of advancing chains, the second apron being disposed in a forage box container bed second portion. A drive mechanism is operably coupled to the split apron system for imparting advancing motion to the advancing chains thereof.

RELATED APPLICATIONS

The present application is a continuation of prior application Ser. No.09/264,738, filed Mar. 8, 1999, issued as U.S. Pat. No. 6,129,630 onOct. 10, 2000.

TECHNICAL FIELD

The present invention relates to a forage box container for haulinglivestock feed or other field crops. More particularly, the presentinvention relates to an improved apron mechanism, the apron mechanismfor delivering the feed contents of the box container toward a dischargeopening in the forage box container for discharge from the forage boxcontainer.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

A forage box container is essentially a container utilized to transportlivestock feed. The container may be mounted on a wagon chassis andtowed by a powered vehicle. The container may be mounted on a truckchassis. The transport is usually from the field in which the feed washarvested to a feed storage facility, where the feed is stored for laterprovision to the livestock. Such transport is frequently along publicroads, where maximum vehicle widths are set by the authorities andenforced.

Most commonly a forage box container is used to haul corn that ischopped as it is harvested from the field. In this condition, most ofthe entire corn plant is conveyed into the forage box container fortransportation and later use as feed. Such corn may be quite heavy andmay adhere to the side walls of the forage box container, especiallywhen the corn is wet.

Forage box containers typically include powered mechanisms for removingthe feed from the forage box container. These powered mechanismstypically include aprons in the floor of the forage box container.Aprons are specially shaped chains that are drawn lengthwise along thefloor of the box container from the front to the rear of the boxcontainer. Bars, typically constructed of angle iron, are transverselyaffixed to the apron chains and are drawn forward by the apron chains,pulling the feed rearward in the box container as the bars moverearward. The feed is then discharged from the box container at the rearof the box container through an opening defined at the bottom of a tophinged rear door. The rear door also functions as a side member of thebox container (in conjunction with the other three sides of the boxcontainer) when the rear door is in a latched and closed disposition.

Forage box containers typically have side mounted drive mechanisms forpowering the aprons. The drive mechanisms are typically mounted exteriorto the box container itself. The side mounting of these mechanisms hasat least two disadvantages. The first is that the total width of theforage box container must conform to the maximum width of a vehiclepermitted to travel on a highway. The width dimension of the drivemechanism (being mounted exterior to the box container itself)contributes to the total width of the forage box container. Accordingly,the box container width dimension of the forage box container must bereduced by the amount of the width of the drive mechanism in order forthe forage box container to be in compliance with the maximum widthlimitation for travel on a highway. The reduced width of the boxcontainer substantially reduces the capacity of the box container,requiring more trips to transport a given quantity of feed.

A second disadvantage of the side mounted drive mechanism is that theapron bars are powered from only the side of the forage box container onwhich the drive mechanism is mounted. Heavy, wet feed in the forage boxcontainer adheres to the inner sides of the forage box container andresists being moved rearward by the aprons for discharge. Since theaprons are powered only at one side, great span-wise bending forces aregenerated in the individual bars of the apron mechanism. These forcesmay bend the bars or twist the bars to such a degree that the apronmechanism becomes inoperable. The feed must then be manually removedfrom the forage box container and repairs of the apron mechanismeffected before the forage box container may be used again.

What is needed in the industry is a forage box container in which thewidth of the box container can take full advantage of the maximum widthdimension allowable for travel on a highway in order to maximize thecapacity of the box container. Further, it would be an advantage tominimize the effects that a load of heavy, wet feed can have on theapron mechanism.

SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION

The forage box of the present invention substantially meets theaforementioned needs of the industry. The width dimension of the boxcontainer is substantially the full dimension (typically, eight feet)allowable for transport on public highways, thereby maximizing thecapacity of the box container. Further, the drive mechanism for theapron mechanism is centered in the box container with a split apron bardisposed on either side of the drive mechanism. By powering the apronmechanism from a center position, the twisting forces generated on theapron mechanism by the act of trying to discharge feed from the boxcontainer are substantially reduced and the potential for damaging theapron mechanism during feed discharge operations is minimized.

The present invention is an apron system for use with a forage boxcontainer include split aprons having a first apron and a second apron,the first apron having a pair of spaced apart, continuous, advancingchains lying along a forage box container longitudinal dimension, aplurality of spaced apart, transverse bars extending substantiallybetween the pair of spaced apart chains, each of the plurality of barsbeing operably coupled to each of the pair of advancing chains, thefirst apron being disposed in the forage box container bed first half.The second apron has a pair of spaced apart, continuous, advancingchains lying along the forage box container longitudinal dimension, aplurality of spaced apart, transverse bars extending substantiallybetween the pair of spaced apart chains, each of the plurality of barsbeing operably coupled to each of the pair of advancing chains, thesecond apron being disposed in the forage box container bed second half.A drive mechanism is disposed substantially coincident with the foragebox container longitudinal axis and being operably coupled to the splitapron system for imparting advancing motion to the advancing chainsthereof. The present invention is further a forage box container thatincludes the above described apron system. Additionally, the presentinvention is a forage box container wagon that includes the abovedescribed apron system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a left rear perspective view of a forage box container havingthe split apron system of the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a fragmentary right rear perspective view of the split apronsystem of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a right side elevational sectional view taken along thesection lines 3—3 of FIG. 5 depicting the split apron system drivemechanism with a portion of the forage box container frame and bed;

FIG. 4 is a rear elevational view of a prior art forage box container;and

FIG. 5 is a rear elevational view of a forage box container of thepresent invention corresponding in width the prior art forage boxcontainer of FIG. 4 to demonstrate the increased width of the presentinvention box container.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The forage box container of the present invention is shown generally at10 in the figures. As depicted in FIG. 1, the forage box container is awagon to be pulled behind a motorized vehicle such as an agriculturaltractor. The forage 10 may also be mounted on a truck chassis or thelike and thereby be self-propelled. In the depiction of FIG. 1, theforage box container 10 is comprised of two major components: boxcontainer 12 and chassis 14. When the forage box container 10 is mountedon a truck, some of the components of the chassis 14 may be truckcomponents. While the reference throughout is to a forage box, it isunderstood that the present invention is equally applicable to othercontainers from which material must be removed largely by gravitythrough an opening located proximate a lower container disposition.

The chassis 14 of the forage box container 10 preferably has a pluralityof chassis members forming a frame box 16. A rear portion of a centrallongitudinal chassis member 17 a is depicted in FIG. 3. The frame box 16additionally is comprised of a plurality of chassis cross members 17 b.Several of the chassis cross members 17 b are depicted in FIG. 3,supported by longitudinal chassis member 17 a.

The chassis 14 further has rear suspension 18, as depicted in FIG. 1.The rear suspension 18 is preferably fixedly coupled to the frame box16. The rear suspension 18 includes a plurality of rear wheels 20.

The chassis 14 additionally includes a front suspension (not shown). Thefront suspension is rotatably coupled to the frame box 16 and supports apair of front wheels 22. A tongue 24 is coupled to the front suspensionfor drawing and steering the forage box container 10.

The box container 12 of the forage box container 10 includes an uprightfront wall 26. Spaced apart side walls 28 are joined to the side marginsof the front wall 26. Side walls 28 preferably include rear lights 30for communicating with traffic behind the forage box container 10. Theside walls 28 additionally include an upright stanchion 32 that formsthe rear margin of each of the side walls 28. It should be noted thatthe upright stanchion 32 projects upward beyond the upper margin of theside walls 28. Each of the upright stanchions 32 has a hinge 34 disposedproximate to the upper margin of the respective upright stanchion 32.

A bed 36 forms the bottom portion of the box container 12. The bed 36 ispreferably formed of a plurality of wooden slats 35 disposedtransversely within the box container 12, as depicted in FIG. 3.

A rear door 38 is disposed opposite and spaced apart from the front wall26. The rear door 38 has a height dimension that is substantiallyco-extensive with the height dimension of the upright stanchion 32thereby projecting above the upper margin of the side walls 28. The reardoor 38 is supported by the hinges 34 of the upright stanchions 32.

The rear door 38 is preferably parallelogram shaped, having spaced apartparallel rear door side margins 40, 42, a top margin 44, and an opposedparallel bottom margin 46. A flexible skirt 48 preferably depends fromthe bottom margin 46 of the rear door 38. A drive cutout 50 ispreferably formed centrally to the bottom margin 46 of the rear door 38.

The rear door 38 is pivotable about the hinges 34 and is latchable atthe bottom margin 46 thereof. The rear door 38 may be unlatched andpivoted rearward on the hinges 34 as indicated by arrow A to define adischarge opening 52 for the discharge of forage from the forage boxcontainer 10.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the forage box container 10 includes anapron mechanism 60. The apron mechanism 60 has two major components:split apron 62 and drive mechanism 64. The split apron 62 essentiallyhas a left apron 63 a that extends generally from the left margin of thebed 36 to the center of the bed 36 and a right apron 63 b that extendsgenerally from the right margin of the bed 36 to the center of the bed36. The drive mechanism lies substantially along a longitudinal axis 65(FIG. 1) of the forage box container 10.

The split apron 62 is comprised generally of continuous advancing chains65, 66 and a plurality of spaced apart generally parallel movable bars68. The bars 68 are advanced along the bed 34 of the box container 12 bythe advancing chains 65, 66. The bars 68 of the left apron 63 a arecoupled to the advancing chain 65. The bars 68 of the right apron 63 bare coupled to the advancing chain 66.

The two advancing chains 65 of the left apron 63 a are engaged with theteeth of spaced apart sprockets 69. See FIGS. 1 and 2. The two advancingchains 66 of the right apron 63 b are engaged with the teeth of spacedapart sprockets 70. Referring to FIG. 3, rotation of the sprockets 69,70 in a counterclockwise direction results in advancement of the upperportion 66 a of the advancing chain 66 along the upper surface of thebed 36. Simultaneously, the lower portion 66 b of the advancing chain 66is retreating toward the front of the forage box container 10 beneaththe bed 36. This motion of the upper portion 66 a and bottom portion 66b of the advancing chain 66 is depicted by the arrows B and C. It shouldbe understood that simultaneously with the motion of the advancing chain66 of the right apron 63 b, as depicted in FIG. 3, similar motion isimparted to the advancing chain 65 of the left apron 63 a. Each of thebars 68 includes an upwardly directed slat 72. Rearward advancement ofthe upwardly directed slats 72 as depicted by arrow B acts on the foragedeposited in the forage box container 10 to drag the forage rearwardtoward the discharge opening 52 to discharge the forage from the foragebox container 10.

A pair of spaced apart side wall journals 74 are supported on the innerside of each of a pair of spaced apart, rearwardly directed flanges 73.The flanges 73 are fixedly coupled to the frame box 16 and to the rearmargin of the upright stanchions 32. A drive shaft 75 is rotatablysupported in the side wall journals 74. The drive shaft 75 is fixedlycoupled to the sprockets 69, 70 and is rotatably coupled to the drivemechanism 64 of the apron mechanism 60.

The drive mechanism 64 includes a bracket 76 as depicted in FIGS. 1 and2. The bracket 76 is bolted to the frame box 16 by bolt 78. Left andright drive journals 80 are supported by the bracket 76. The drive shaft75 is rotatably supported by a bore defined in the left and right drivejournals 80. A grease fitting 82 is provided in each of the drivejournals 80 for lubricating the interface between the drive shaft 75 andthe drive journals. A sprocket cover 84 is fixedly coupled to the framebox 16 by a bolt 86. The sprocket cover 84 resides in the cutout 50 whenthe rear door 38 is latched closed.

A peaked shroud 88 extends the full lengthwise dimension of the bed 36of the box container 12 and spans the lateral distance between the leftsplit apron 63 a and the right split apron 63 b. The shroud 88 isgenerally positioned between the innermost advancing chain 65 of theleft split apron 63 a and the innermost advancing chain 66 of the rightsplit apron 63 b along the longitudinal axis 65 of the forage boxcontainer 10. The shroud 88 has a shroud peak 90 defined by theintersection of an angled shroud left side 92 and an angled shroud rightside 94.

The drive mechanism 64 of the apron mechanism 60 is depicted in FIG. 3.An orbit motor 100, depicted in phantom, is disposed on the left side ofthe central longitudinal chassis member 17 a. The orbit motor 100 may bedriven by hydraulic fluid or other suitable source of motivation. Theorbit motor 100 is coupled to the chassis member 17 a in registry with abore 102 defined in the chassis member 17 a. The orbit motor 100 driveshaft 104 projects through the bore 102. The drive shaft 104 is fixedlycoupled to a toothed drive pinion 106.

The drive pinion 106 is driveably engaged with the links of a primarychain 108. The primary chain 108 is continuous and extends around arelatively large primary sprocket 109. The primary chain 108 istensioned by a primary tensioner 110.

The primary tensioner 110 has a roller 112 that is engaged with theprimary chain 108. Tension of the roller 112 bearing on the primarychain 108 is adjusted by selective positioning of a tensioner bracket114. The bracket 114 has art elongate slot 116 defined therein. A pairof bolts 118 pass through the slot 116 and are engaged with threadedbores (not shown) defined in the longitudinal central chassis member 17a. Alternatively, either or both of the bolts 118 could be a threadedstud welded at a first end to the longitudinal central chassis member 17a with a nut on each stud securing the bracket 114 to the longitudinalcentral chassis member 17 a. Other suitable connectors can also be used.Positioning the bracket 114 with respect to the bolts 118 affects thetension exerted by the roller 112 on the primary chain 108.

The primary sprocket 109 is borne on a rotatable primary shaft 120. Theprimary shaft 120 is rotatably supported in a journal (not shown) thatis fixedly coupled to the right side of the central longitudinal chassismember 17 a. A secondary pinion 122 is fixedly coupled to the primaryshaft 120 and mounted coaxially with primary sprocket 109. A secondarychain 124 extends around the secondary pinion 122. The secondary chain124 is tensioned by a secondary tensioner 126 that is slidably coupledto the central longitudinal chassis member 22 a by bolts 128. Thesecondary tensioner 126 exerts a desired amount of tension on thesecondary chain 124 in a manner similar to that exerted by the primarytensioner 110 on the primary chain 108.

The secondary chain 124 extends around the secondary sprocket 130. Thesecondary sprocket 130 is fixedly coupled to splined couplers 132,depicted in FIGS. 1 and 2. The splined couplers 132 are fixedly engagedwith the drive shaft 75.

In operation, the rear door 38 of the box container 12 is latched closedfor filling of the forage box container 10 with forage and for transportof the forage box container 10. Typically the forage box container 10 isfilled by blowing or augering forage into the open top of the forage boxcontainer 10.

To discharge a load of forage from the forage box container 10, the reardoor 38 is unlatched and swung open on the hinges 34, as indicated byarrow A, to define the discharge opening 52. The drive mechanism 64 ofthe apron mechanism 60 may then be powered to simultaneously activatethe left and right split aprons 63 a, 63 b of the split apron system 62.

Power is applied to the orbit motor 100, causing rotational motion ofthe drive pinion 106. This rotational motion is transmitted through theprimary sprocket 109 to the secondary sprocket 130 by means of theprimary chain 108 and the secondary chain 124. Such motion results incounterclockwise rotation of the secondary sprocket 130, as depicted inFIG. 3. Such rotation of the secondary sprocket 130 impartscorresponding rotation to the drive shaft 75 that drives both the leftsplit apron 63 a and the right split apron 63 b. The drive shaft 75,acting through the respective sprockets 69, 70, imparts advancing motionto the advancing chains 65, 66, respectively. Such advancing motioncauses the upper portion of the advancing chains 65, 66 as indicated bythe upper portion 66 a in FIG. 3 to advance rearward parallel to thelongitudinal axis 65 across the upper surface of the bed 36 as indicatedby the arrow B. A corresponding motion is imparted to the upper portion(not shown) of advancing chain 65. Such advancing motion causes theslats 72 to engage the forage in the forage box container 10, therebypulling the forage rearward for discharge from the discharge opening 52.

By positioning the drive mechanism 64 centrally along the longitudinalaxis of the forage box container 10, power is evenly transmitted to boththe left split apron 63 a and the right split apron 63 b to minimize thetorquing action that prior art side-mounted drive mechanisms caused. Theshroud 88 acts to direct the forage to either the left or the right sideof the shroud 88 to be engaged by the respective left and right splitapron 63 a, 63 b.

Referring to FIGS. 4 and 5, a further advantage of the split apron ofthe present invention is apparent. The width dimension W, as depicted inthe prior art depiction of FIG. 4 and in FIG. 5 depicting the forage boxcontainer of the present invention is the same dimension. The widthdimension W is the maximum permitted width for travel on publichighways. Typically this dimension is eight feet. As indicated in theprior art figure, FIG. 4, the width of the box container 150 of theprior art forage box container 152 was necessarily reduced by an amountequal to the width dimension of the side mounted drive mechanism 154.With the centrally mounted apron mechanism 60 of the present inventionas depicted in FIG. 5, the box container 12 of the forage box container10 may be increased by an amount equal to the width of the side mounteddrive mechanism 154 as compared to the prior art forage box container152 of FIG. 4. The volume that is recouped is represented by the hatchedarea 156 of FIG. 5.

Those skilled in the art will recognize that there are numerousvariations and modifications of this invention which are encompassed byits scope. Accordingly, the foregoing description should be consideredillustrative of the invention and not deemed to limit its scope.

I claim:
 1. A load discharge mechanism for use with a forage boxcontainer, the forage box container having a forage box container bedand a longitudinal axis and a transverse axis, the longitudinal axisdividing the forage box container bed into a first portion and asubstantially equal second portion, the forage box container bed havinga first side margin and a spaced apart second side margin, the loaddischarge mechanism comprising: a split apron system having a firstapron and a second apron, the first apron having a first pair of spacedapart, continuous, advancing chains, a first one of the first pair ofspaced apart, continuous, advancing chains being disposed proximate thefirst side margin of the forage box container bed and a second one ofthe first pair of spaced apart, continuous, advancing chains beingdisposed proximate the longitudinal axis of the forage box containerbed, a first plurality of spaced apart, transverse bars extendingsubstantially between the pair of spaced apart chains over the entirespan of the spaced apart chains, each of the plurality of bars beingoperably coupled to each of the first pair of advancing chains, thefirst apron being disposed in the forage box container bed firstportion, the second apron having a second pair of spaced apart,continuous, advancing chains, a first one of the second pair of spacedapart, continuous, advancing chains being disposed proximate the secondside margin of the forage box container bed and a second one of thesecond pair of spaced apart, continuous, advancing chains being disposedproximate the longitudinal axis of the forage box container bed a secondplurality of spaced apart, transverse bars extending substantiallybetween the second pair of spaced apart chains over the entire span ofthe spaced apart chains, each of the plurality of bars being operablycoupled to each of the second pair of advancing chains, the second apronbeing disposed in the forage box container bed second portion; a drivemechanism disposed substantially between the first and second aprons andbeing operably coupled to the split apron for imparting advancing motionto the advancing chains thereof, said advancing motion acting to impartcontinuous advancing motion to a bulk product disposed on the forage boxcontainer bed for the continuous discharge of the bulk producttherefrom; and a shroud being disposed between the first apron and thesecond apron and extending along the forage box container bed.
 2. Theload discharge mechanism of claim 1 wherein at least a first portion ofthe load discharge mechanism is disposed in a forage box containerdischarge opening, proximate a first shroud end margin.
 3. The loaddischarge mechanism of claim 2 wherein the at least a first portion ofthe load discharge mechanism that is disposed in a forage box containerdischarge opening includes a chain driven sprocket, the sprocket beingoperably, rotatably coupled to a drive shaft, the drive shaft beingoperably coupled to the split apron for imparting advancing motion tothe advancing chains thereof.
 4. The load discharge mechanism of claim 3wherein at least a second portion of the drive mechanism is disposedbeneath the forage box container bed and proximate the forage boxcontainer discharge opening, the second portion of the drive mechanismbeing operably coupled to the first portion of the drive mechanism. 5.The load discharge mechanism of claim 2 wherein the drive mechanismincludes a rotary drive motor and reduction gearing operably coupled tothe first portion of the drive mechanism for rotational actuationthereof.
 6. The load discharge mechanism of claim 5 wherein the drivemechanism rotary drive motor is hydraulically actuated.
 7. The loaddischarge mechanism of claim 5 wherein the drive mechanism reductiongearing is chain driven and includes a primary sprocket and a secondarysprocket for rotational speed reduction.
 8. The load discharge mechanismof claim 3 further including drive mechanism bracket means beingoperably, fixedly coupled to the forage box container and having a pairof spaced apart journals, a first journal being disposed to rotatablysupport a first end of the chain drive shaft and a second journal beingdisposed to rotatably support a second end of the chain drive shaft. 9.The load discharge mechanism of claim 8 further including a sprocketcover operably coupled to the forage box container and substantiallyenclosing the chain driven sprocket for shielding the sprocket fromdischarged forage.
 10. A forage box container having a forage boxcontainer bed, the forage box container bed into a first portion and asecond portion along a longitudinal axis, the forage box containercomprising: a split apron system having a first apron and a secondapron, the first apron being disposed on a forage box container bedfirst portion, the second apron being disposed on a forage box containerbed second portion the split apron first apron having a first pair ofspaced apart, continuous, advancing chains lying along the forage boxcontainer bed, a first plurality of spaced apart, transverse barsextending substantially between the first pair of spaced apart chains,each of the first plurality of bars being operably coupled to each ofthe first pair of advancing chains, the first apron being disposed inthe forage box container bed first portion, the split aprons secondapron having a second pair of spaced apart, continuous, advancing chainslying along the forage box container bed, a second plurality of spacedapart, transverse bars extending substantially between the second pairof spaced apart chains, each of the second plurality of bars beingoperably coupled to each of the second pair of advancing chains, thesecond apron being disposed in the forage box container bed secondportion; a drive mechanism disposed substantially between the first andsecond apron and being operably coupled to the split apron for impartingadvancing motion to the first apron and the second apron, said advancingmotion acting to impart continuous advancing motion to a bulk productdisposed on the forage box container bed for the continuous discharge ofthe bulk product therefrom, the drive mechanism for imparting advancingmotion to the advancing chains thereof; and a shroud being disposedbetween the first apron and the second apron and extending along theforage box container bed.
 11. The forage box container of claim 10wherein at least a first portion of the drive mechanism is disposed in aforage box container discharge opening, proximate a forage box containerbed end margin.
 12. The forage box container of claim 11 wherein the atleast a first portion of the drive mechanism that is disposed in aforage box container discharge opening includes a chain driven sprocket,the sprocket being operably, rotatably coupled to a drive shaft, thedrive shaft being operably coupled to the split apron for impartingadvancing motion to the advancing chains thereof.
 13. The forage boxcontainer of claim 12 wherein at least a second portion of the drivemechanism is disposed centrally beneath the forage box container bed andproximate the forage box container discharge opening, the second portionof the drive mechanism being operably coupled to the a first portion ofthe drive mechanism.
 14. The forage box container of claim 11 whereinthe drive mechanism includes a rotary drive motor and reduction gearingoperably coupled to the at least a first portion of the drive mechanismfor rotational actuation thereof.
 15. The forage box container of claim14 wherein the drive mechanism rotary drive motor is hydraulicallyactuated.
 16. The forage box container of claim 14 wherein the drivemechanism reduction gearing is chain driven and includes a primarysprocket and a secondary sprocket for rotational speed reduction. 17.The forage box container of claim 12 further including drive mechanismbracket means operably, fixedly coupled to the forage box container andhaving a pair of spaced apart journals, a first journal being disposedto rotatably support a first end of the chain drive shaft and a secondjournal being disposed to rotatably support a second end of the chaindrive shaft.
 18. The forage box container of claim 17 further includinga sprocket cover operably coupled to the forage box container andsubstantially enclosing the chain driven sprocket for shielding thesprocket from discharged forage.
 19. A method of continuouslydischarging a bulk product disposed in forage box container, comprising:disposing a continuous split apron system longitudinally with respect toa container bed to substantially span a container bed topside and acontainer bed underside from a first container bed end margin to asecond container bed end margin; providing a plurality of bars spacedcontinuously along the continuous split apron system; disposing a drivemechanism substantially along a container bed longitudinal axis;bringing the portion of the plurality of transverse bars spanning thecontainer bed topside into contact with the bulk product; disposing ashroud extending along a substantially full longitudinal dimension ofthe forage box container bed overlying a portion of the continuous splitapron system; and activating the drive mechanism to impart a continuousadvancing motion to the split apron system, said motion rotating thesplit apron system relative to the container bed the advancing bars ofthe split apron system acting to continuously advance the bulk productfor discharge from the container bed.
 20. The method of claim 19including the split apron system having a first apron and a secondapron.
 21. The method of claim 20 including: driving the first apronwith a first pair of spaced apart, continuous, advancing chains;disposing a first one of the first pair of spaced apart, continuous,advancing chains being proximate a first side margin of the forage boxcontainer bed; disposing a second one of the first pair of spaced apart,continuous, advancing chains proximate a longitudinal axis of the foragebox container; driving the second apron with a second pair of spacedapart, continuous, advancing chains; disposing a first one of the secondpair of spaced apart, continuous, advancing chains being disposedproximate a second side margin of the forage box container bed; anddisposing a second one of the second pair of spaced apart, continuous,advancing chains being disposed proximate the longitudinal axis of theforage box container bed.
 22. The method of claim 21 including:disposing the drive mechanism substantially between the first and secondaprons; and operably coupling the drive mechanism to the split apron forimparting advancing motion to the advancing chains thereof, saidadvancing motion acting to impart continuous advancing motion to a bulkproduct disposed on the forage box container bed for the continuousdischarge of the bulk product therefrom.
 23. The method of claim 22including disposing the shroud between the first apron and the secondapron and extending along a substantially full longitudinal dimension ofthe forage box container bed.
 24. The method of claim 22 includingproviding a drive mechanism chain driven sprocket, operably, rotatablycoupling the sprocket to a drive shaft, and operably coupling the driveshaft to the split apron.
 25. The method of claim 24 including operablycoupling a rotary drive motor to the chain driven sprocket and reducingthe rotation of the chain drive sprocket by means of reduction gearing.26. The method of claim 25 including hydraulically actuating the drivemechanism rotary drive motor.
 27. The method of claim 25 includingreducing rotational speed of the chain drive sprocket by means of aprimary sprocket and a secondary sprocket operably interposed betweenthe rotary drive motor and the chain driven sprocket.
 28. A forage boxcontainer having a forage box container bed, a split apron system, and adrive mechanism, the forage box container bed being divided into a firstportion and a second portion along a longitudinal axis, the forage boxcontainer comprising, the split apron system having a first apron and asecond apron, the first apron being disposed on a forage box containerbed first portion, the second apron being disposed on a forage boxcontainer bed second portion, and the drive mechanism being disposedsubstantially between the first and second aprons and being operablycoupled to the split apron system for imparting advancing motion to thefirst apron and the second apron, said advancing motion acting to impartcontinuous advancing motion to a bulk product disposed on the forage boxcontainer bed for the continuous discharge of the bulk producttherefrom; the forage box container comprising: a high rear door pivotpoint, the high rear door pivot point being elevated above a containerside wall upper margin.
 29. The forage box container of claim 28 whereinthe high rear door pivot point is supported on a pair of spaced apartupright stanchions, the stanchions having an upper margin that iselevated above a container side wall upper margin.
 30. The forage boxcontainer of claim 29 further including a rear door rotatably suspendedfrom the high hinge point, the rear door having a height dimension thatis substantially coextensive with an upright stanchion height dimension.31. The forage box container of claim 28 further including a rear door,the rear door having a bottom margin, a flexible skirt depending fromthe bottom margin.
 32. The forage box container of claim 31 wherein adrive cutout is defined substantially central to the rear door bottommargin.
 33. A forage box container having a forage box container bed, asplit apron system, and a drive mechanism, the forage box container bedbeing divided into a first portion and a second portion, the forage boxcontainer comprising, the split apron system having a first apron and asecond apron, the first apron being disposed on a forage box containerbed first portion, the second apron being disposed on a forage boxcontainer bed second portion, and the drive mechanism being disposedsubstantially between the first and second aprons and being operablycoupled to the split apron system for imparting advancing motion to thefirst apron and the second apron, said advancing motion acting to impartcontinuous advancing motion to a bulk product disposed on the forage boxcontainer bed for the continuous discharge of the bulk producttherefrom; the forage box container comprising: the drive mechanismhaving a centrally disposed sprocket, the sprocket being disposedproximate a container discharge opening and being operably coupled tothe split apron system for imparting motion thereto carrying the firstand second aprons along the container bed; and a shroud extendingsubstantially the length of a container bed, the shroud overlying thedrive chain.
 34. The forage box container of claim 33 further includinga drive shaft extending substantially the width of the container bed andbeing operably rotatably coupled to the sprocket, the drive shaft beingoperably coupled to the first and second aprons for imparting the motionthereto carrying the first and second aprons along the container bed.35. The forage box container of claim 34 further including a drive chainextending substantially the length of the container bed and beingoperably rotatably coupled to the sprocket, the drive chain beingoperably coupled to the first and second aprons for imparting the motionthereto carrying the first and second aprons along the container bed.36. The forage box container of claim 33 wherein the shroud has acentral peak formed at the apex of two inclined sides.
 37. The foragebox container of claim 33 further including a sprocket cover beingdisposed over the sprocket.
 38. The forage box container of claim 33wherein the sprocket is chain driven.
 39. The forage box container ofclaim 33 wherein the width dimension of the container is substantiallyequal to the maximum permitted width for travel on public highways. 40.The forage box container of claim 33 wherein the width dimension of thecontainer is substantially eight feet.
 41. A forage box container havinga forage box container bed, a split apron system, and a drive mechanism,the forage box container bed being divided into a first portion and asecond portion, the forage box container comprising, the split apronsystem having a first apron and a second apron, the first apron beingdisposed on a forage box container bed first portion, the second apronbeing disposed on a forage box container bed second portion, and thedrive mechanism being disposed substantially between the first andsecond aprons and being operably coupled to the split apron system forimparting advancing motion to the first apron and the second apron, saidadvancing motion acting to impart continuous advancing motion to a bulkproduct disposed on the forage box container bed for the continuousdischarge of the bulk product therefrom; the forage box containercomprising: a shroud extending along a length of the container bed, theshroud overlying a portion of the drive mechanism.
 42. The forage boxcontainer of claim 41 wherein the shroud has a central peak formed atthe apex of two inclined sides.
 43. The forage box container of claim 41further including a sprocket cover being disposed over a sprocket.